INDIGO BUNTING 



127 



INDIGO BUNTING 



This is the bluest of things blue, I do believe, 

 in all the country, — like a drop precipitated by 

 the delicate azure that is held in solution by the 

 summer air. Blue we see in the velvety skies of 

 the region ; it hangs like a veil of flame — the 

 thin violet flame of certain gases — over the 

 sides of mountains and is reflected in the river; 

 it is accented by bluebells, blue phlox, tradescan- 

 tia, and bluets; in this bird it flashes fire! — a 

 color deep as a tur- 

 quoise, burnished like a 

 sapphire, dusky on the 

 wing feathers and dark- 

 ening to indigo only on 

 the head. 



As is usual among 

 species of splendid plu- 

 mage, the female aspires 

 to none of this physical 

 glory, choosing rather the safety of the eggs and 

 nestlings, which her Sparrow-like coloration 

 helps to conceal. The pretty cup-shaped nest is 

 generally set in the crotch of a bush, and is com- 

 pactly made of grasses, dead leaves, and strips 

 of bark, lined with hairs and softer vegetable 

 fibres. 



The Indigo Bird's song is a cheery warble 



INDIGO BUNTING 

 Length 5^ inches 



